Demons in my Head 3: Ties that Bond Also Choke
by Mad Cow
Summary: This is the *real* Ties that Bond. I'm leaving the fake one up for nostalgia's sake. Anyway, Hank, Peter, and two of their friends go on a road trip...to Kingsport! The prologue and chapter 1 up. (m/m fluff)


Bet you guys thought I was gone, huh?  
Thanks to Aricraze, my lovely and talented BETA reader!  
Which of course, reminds me that I LOVE to BETA other people's fics, so if any of you have something you want me to read...  
And hey, if you're really bored, check out my DeadJournal. I just put it up, and I think it's a little lonely, 'cause no one visits it. http://www.deadjournal.com/users/kleenexcow. It has a link to my IaHB website (*shameless plug*) on it and everything!  
Disclaimer: I think I may own Peter, Jess, and Abby. Squee, I have some semblance of power! I don't own Jamie, except for that piece of his leg. And I don't officially own Hank, I just stole him to put in my torture chamber once IaHB ended, because well, honestly, no one else wanted him, and I think he is oh-so-sexy in leather. If you are a Alliance Atlantis lawyer, and you are offended by my story about your character, pretend I'm writing about my computer who is also, coincidentally, named Hank. And if he's up for sale, I'll buy him!  
IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH A STORY THAT PARTIALLY REVOLVES AROUND THE ROMANCE BETWEEN TWO GUYS, STOP READING NOW. You have been warned. I don't want to see any "i hate gay people you demon you are going to hell for making me read this crap" reviews for the story, because I warned you. This story is for open minded people only.  
  
By the way, this was written for one of my bestest buddies _ever_ . He knows why. (He also knows that I can't believe he's leaving me for *college*. Phhfft.)  
  
Prologue  
Hank dialed up the number for the Kingsport EMS station, and waited. Finally, some girl he didn't know picked up. "Hello. you've reached Kingsport EMS, how may I help you?"  
"I need to speak to Dr. Alex Freedman."  
"One second," said the girl, and Hank was patched through.   
"Hello?"   
"Alex? This is Hank Beecham."  
"Hello, Hank!" greeted Alex. "How are you?"  
"Good. I'm calling because I'm going to come back to Kingsport this summer, and I'm wondering if I still have a place on the squad."  
"Your certification is still current, as long as you're in remission again."  
Hank sighed. "That's the thing, I'm not. But I'm on a lot of medication, and part of my therapy group is also coming along, and-"  
Alex cut him off. "Then I can't allow you to serve as an EMT. How determined are you to work at the station?"  
"Very."  
"Well, then I'll pull some string at the city council. I'm currently seeking an assistant director for the station, and if the city council will hire you and you're willing to fill it, I'd love to have you. In fact, even if they don't hire you, I will still be very willing to allow you to volunteer at the station--doing everything but ride-alongs. Pretty much, my assistant director without the title or paycheck."  
"I'd love to help," said Hank. "You don't know how much I want to be a part of Kingsport EMS again."  
"Well," said Alex. "I'll talk to city council tomorrow, and I'll call you back in a couple of days."  
"Thanks, Alex."  
"No problem."  
***  
"Why are you here today, Dr. Freedman?" asked the mayor before the city council.   
"As you know," said Alex, "ever since Jennifer left, the position of assistant manager has been left unfilled. I have found a candidate for the job. His name is Hank Beecham, a certified EMT-I, and he will be a senior next year at Alexakis High School, in Alexakis, Arizona."  
"You want us to hire a high schooler who doesn't even live in the state?" asked a councilwoman.  
"He will be staying in Kingsport over the summer, and I think he will be a good stand-in until we can find a real assistant director, in August. He's trustworthy, honest, hardworking, and quite frankly, the best EMT that has ever served under me."  
"Then why aren't you accepting him as an EMT?" questioned a councilman.  
"He has a disease which makes him a danger to patients. There is no problem with him doing office work for me, just in interaction with patients."  
The mayor looked at Hank's file. "The boy is Obsessive Compulsive."  
Alex nodded. "Yes. He is. The last call I ever allowed him to go on, he neglected the patient in order to clean her house. Two of the other EMTs on his squad had to physically manhandle him into the ambulance, and the patient almost pressed charges, and so I removed him from the squad. However, that does not change the fact that he has a very wide experience with EMS, the fact that he is very organized and responsible, and," Alex smiled a bit, "the station will be very clean. You doubt my choice, but I know from his former days as the senior EMT on my most reliable, hard working squad that he works very well with me, and with the other people at the station. He is the best choice for this. This job was made for him."  
  
Chapter 1  
"I can't believe we are taking Jess' car to Kingsport," grumbled Hank as he threw his luggage into the back of the clunker, and hoped that it wouldn't fall out of it through some unseen hole.  
"It's hers or walking, Hank," said Peter. "Just too bad that a certain person had to give his truck to his younger brother for the summer."  
Hank raised an eyebrow, mock-angry. "Too bad that my mom made me."  
Jess walked around to the back of her car, hanging up her cell phone. "That was Mike," she said, naming her boyfriend and the fourth member of the expedition. "His grandmother died last night. He has to fly up to Seattle for the funeral, and spend the rest of the summer packing up her house."  
Peter groaned. "Man, without Mike, we're going to be splitting costs three ways. It'll be more expensive."  
"So we'll find someone else," suggested Hank.  
"Who will we find to come along with us for the summer on such short notice?" asked Peter.  
Jess shrugged. "How about Abby?" she asked. "Abby was complaining the other day because she wasn't doing anything this summer. We all get along with her pretty well, yes?"  
Hank repeated Jess' gesture. "Okay. I'll call." Jess tossed him the phone, and he dialed her number. Abby was one of the few kids in group that was Hank's age, so they were fairly good friends.  
A few moments later, and the deal was done. Abby was coming along with them, though she said she needed a day to pack and tie up loose ends before she hopped in Jess' car and traveled across country.  
Peter motioned for the phone when Hank explained the new delay. "I'll need to call Dad, then," he said. "So he'll know to expect us a day later."  
Hank passed Peter the phone. A few seconds later, he said, "Hey, Jamie?" A pause. "It's Peter. Tell Dad we're leaving a day later, so we won't be in until Monday. One of the guys canceled, and we found a replacement, but she needs a day to get ready." Beat. "Yeah, it's going to be me, my roommate, and a guy and girl from group." Another pause. "I'll try. All right, see you then." Peter hung up, and the phone was thrown back to Jess.  
Hank grinned. "Jamie still have no idea that I'm coming along?"  
Peter shook his head. "Nope."  
"Good. If Jamie doesn't know, then he can't tell anyone else."  
A day later, they were on their way. Jess started out driving, with Peter in the front, and Abby and Hank in the back. However, after much flirting, Peter was shunned to the back seat with Hank, and Abby moved to the front. Their days fell into a sort of pattern after that. Peter was not allowed to drive, because he was bad about letting his eyes stray from the road, and after a near collision with a barn, Abby was not allowed the keys, either. Jess trusted Hank with her "baby", though, so the two took turns.  
The first night, Hank pulled her car into the gravel road of the inn where they had made reservations. It was a few minutes shy of midnight, and the interior of the car was silent, save the light breathing of the others in the car, and the muffled sound of music coming from Abby's headphones. Hank parked, and stretched, feeling the crunch of the Subway wrappers from dinner beneath him.  
_You don't need to clean, you don't need to clean_, he repeated in his mind, and climbed out of the car. He stretched, then walked around to Peter's side, and tapped on the window. "Peter?" Peter did not wake up, so Jamie grabbed the door handle, and opened it a short way. Peter fell against the door, and was woken up.   
"Wha?" he groaned, and straightened himself up. Hank opened the door the rest of the way.   
"We're at the Inn," Hank informed him. "You have the reservations, right?" Peter nodded, and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Hank woke the girls and retrieved the luggage while Peter got the room.   
Now, the fact that they were all high school/college students with not a lot of money who had assumed that the trip would be made by two couples posed a problem, as they had only gotten one room with two beds. Everyone changed into sleeping clothes, and the girls vowed to stick to their own side of the bed before turning out the light.  
In the guys' bed, however, there was no such dinstiction of side. Hank curled next to Peter, and Peter laid an arm on Hank's back before they fell asleep. They were quite tired, after all, and besides, Ms. Beecham had been promised (in her words, not theirs) "absolutely no funny business", and neither boy had any intention of violating it.  
At least not on the first night.  
***  
They pulled into Kingsport a few days later, the noonday sun high overhead. Jess parked the car in the Waite driveway, void of Jamie's tell-tale motorcycle. A flick of a key, and they entered the house. They trundled up the stairs, and Peter motioned to a closed door. "That's the guest room. You girls will have to fight over who gets it, and who gets the couch in the rec room." Hank and Peter continued down the hall, to a door that Peter pushed open.   
It was a rather plain room, all of the life stripped out of it and moved to New Mexico. "This is my room. You'll be in here. Before Mike canceled, it was going to be Jess and Mike in the guest room and you in the rec room. But now that the girls requested separate rooms..." Peter trailed off, smiling devilishly. "There is no where else for you to stay. You'll have to make do." He motioned to a cot. "I had Jamie move it in here for you." Peter smiled devilishly. "You won't be using it, but my family doesn't need to know that."  
Hank laughed, and set down his stuff. "I'm gonna go to the station. Alex is expecting me."  
Peter nodded. "Bye," he said, and with a quick good-bye kiss, Hank left the room. He swung into the guest room, where Jess was unpacking. "Jess, can I borrow the car?" he asked. "Gotta get to the station."  
She nodded. "Yeah, sure. Bring it back in one piece."  
"Easier said than done!" laughed Hank as he grabbed the keys to the clunker.  
On his way to the station, Hank passed an ambulance, and a quick glance proved that it was his former squad. Good, it meant that they were on duty, but not at the station. Perfect for a surprise. 


End file.
